Such water dispensers are configured such that when a lever or a cock is operated by a user to open a valve in a water discharge line, water in the water storage tank can be discharged through the water discharge line into e.g. a user's cup. One of such conventional water dispensers is configured such that the raw water container is placed at the lower portion of the casing, with the water storage tank provided at a level higher than the raw water container. With this arrangement, when the empty raw water container is exchanged with a new one, an operator does not have to lift the heavy new raw water container to a high level, so that it is possible to save the labor of the operator. Since the water storage tank is located at a level higher than the raw water container, this water dispenser includes a water supply line through which water in the raw water tank can be lifted to the water storage tank. When water in the water storage tank decreases, a pump is configured to be automatically activated to lift water in the raw water container to the water supply tank until water in the water storage tank reaches a predetermined amount (see
JP Patent Publication 2001-153523A (especially paragraphs [0021] and and FIGS. 2 and 3), and JP Patent 4802299).
The water dispenser disclosed in JP Patent Publication 2001-153523A includes a casing having a loading space at its lower portion, a slide table, an exchangeable raw water container which can be moved into and out of the loading space, while being placed on the slide table, a water storage tank mounted in the casing, and a water supply line through which water in the raw water container is to be drawn up and supplied into the water storage tank. The casing includes right and left side plates defining the loading space. The side plates have front distal end portions, respectively, which are bent toward each other, for increased rigidity. The raw water container is placed on the top surface of the slide table with its mouth facing upward. The water supply line has a first end portion which can be pushed into the mouth of the container from over the mouth.
In the water dispenser disclosed in JP Patent 4802299, which is of the type in which the raw water container is placed on the slide table in the upside down position, the slide table has a piercing portion configured to push up the plug of the raw water container into the container. The piercing portion includes the first end portion of the water supply line. Ordinarily, the plug of the raw water container is pushed up by the piercing portion by lifting the raw water container in the upside down position and then lowering the container while kept in contact with the piercing portion. Or otherwise, the piercing portion may be raised toward the raw water container, which is kept stationary over the piercing portion, as disclosed in JP Patent 4802299.
Some of the raw water containers used in these water dispensers are hard bottles, while others are soft containers having a peripheral side wall which is collapsible under the atmospheric pressure when water in the container decreases. Soft raw water containers can be transported easily after they become empty.
If a soft container is used as the raw water container as disclosed in JP Patent Publication 2001-153523A, while the raw water container is collapsed substantially in the vertical direction as water in the container decreases, if the peripheral side wall 101 of the raw water container 100 is collapsed in an uneven manner for one reason or another as shown in FIG. 7 or 8, the peripheral side wall 101 could partially protrude into spaces behind front distal ends 102a of the side plates 102. If this happens, when the slide table 103 is pulled out of the loading space, the protruding portions of the peripheral side wall 101, whose rigidity is high because it is collapsed, will get caught on one or both of the front distal ends 102a, thus making it difficult to pull out the slide table 103.